We often talk about comfort zones, in illustrations and perhaps in our minds, as if they are circular elasticated bands that stretch out, and out again, as we confront aspects of your lives that are difficult. But in reality, there is nothing smooth, circular or even comforting about how we perceive our confidence, our limits and where we are in life.

Yvie’s story will help to explain why we should be viewing our feats as more star-shaped, where darkness is as essential as light; sharing insight into why we don’t always feel that incredible buzz when we’ve accomplished something, which can often lead to inertia and depression.

A diverse policing career ending with a breakdown, three years’ self-unemployed, a diagnosis of Bipolar Disorder, and fresh on the back of an Olympic Triathlon and the Cardiff Half Marathon dressed as a polar bear, in 2016, Yvie wanted to cultivate the message of the Fierce Mind: strength through adventures.

Her goal: to run from Land’s End to John O’Groats and back again, solo, to inspire people to explore and run despite their personal challenges, to set a new world record, and fundraise for mental health charities.

Writing herself into the history books but giving herself just six months to turn her physical health around, she had to overcome immense obstacles, endure extreme weather fronts, physical set backs, daily emotional and mental turmoil, often alone, whilst at the mercy of human kindness and self-preservation. Crossing mountain ranges, motorways, cities and even remote Dartmoor, she refused to succumb to weeks of shin splints, hallucinations due to medicinal withdrawal symptoms, sleep deprivation, dehydration and sun stroke.

95 days later, the slump into depression began, and the real epiphanies of that journey would take months to make themselves known.

The real motivating factor for that event was to prove that a mental illness is not enough to stop you from achieving something extraordinary, so you should never accept being side-lined for managing your situation.

Back at home, Yvie has three bilingual children, lives with her freelance Mountain Leader partner in North Wales, explores creative & mindful adventuring as a form of therapy, with writing, photography and illustration being essential components of her cathartic skillset. Yvie blogs on subjects such as mental health and managing bipolar disorder, as well as the relationships between sufferer, carer and immediate family. Using sport, exercise and nutrition as part of her therapeutic toolbox, she is a staunch supporter of learning to understand your own version of therapy, and making it work for you.

A former Team GB age-group triathlete, adventure racer, duathlete and mountain runner, having represented her country, triathlon club and police force, she is now setting her sights on a 2017 year of adventure in Wales, to once again fight with a fierce mind. 5 multi-stage endurance challenges, this time focusing on understanding from the perspective of her role as a parent, advocating for improved mental health support for young people, for her own children, and whilst raising money for YoungMinds.